Heh, no I don't think it is just you. I've just returned from a couple of weeks in Italy (with my GPS) and that was part of the context of my answer--it was incredibly helpful having the GPS in Milan, Tuscany, Naples, Bari, etc. The only frustration in Naples was usually I pick hotel in the center off the GPS (and am guided right there), but in Naples the first three hotels didn't in fact exist, at least at the indicated places. So then I turned off the GPS and drove in a straight line until I found a hotel; not complicated.

Where there are good GPS maps, I can't resist the convenience of using a GPS. I was also glad to have one in Ulan Baator (and Mongolia generally) and most other unfamiliar cities. On the other hand, if the GPS map sucks, there is not much point in using it--the maps I had for Morocco were abysmal and I soon turned them off altogether.

Not to mention the fact that in many places it is rather difficult to communicate with locals with any great accuracy because of language issues.

But the easiest way to avoid the problem is to avoid big cities altogether.

Is that a reason for not using a GPS? That could also be a reason for not riding a motorcycle, using a cell phone, etc etc., all of which could be stolen or break.

Of course if it is stolen or breaks you don't use it anymore! Although I've used GPS for tens of thousands of kilometers in all sorts of places and have only lost one. No big deal.